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All 1959 Franklin half dollars feature a right-facing bust of Benjamin Franklin on its obverse side, which also features the words "liberty" and "in God we trust." The obverse side also carries the coin's year of production. On its reverse side, 1959 Franklin half dollars feature an engraving of the cracked face of the Liberty Bell, along with the words "United States of America," the term "half dollar" and the Latin phrase "e pluribus unum."

The coin is 90-percent silver and contains a total silver weight of 0.36 troy ounces. When the market price of silver is $20.30, the intrinsic value, also known as the melt value, of the coin is $7.34. The collectors value for a 1959 Franklin half dollar ranges from between $12 to $55, depending on its condition, according to the 2014 values available in the price guide from CoinTrackers.

The Philadelphia mint produced about 6.2 million Benjamin Franklin half dollars, while the Denver mint produced a little over 13 million. The Philadelphia also produced proof versions of the coin.